Brockton Police Chief Emanuel Gomes returning to job as captain

The change is part of an agreement between Brockton, the police union and Chief Gomes as the mayor moves to replace the chief's position with that of a civilian police commissioner.

Staff Reporter

Brockton Police Chief Emanuel Gomes will be returning to his former position of captain, meaning the city will be on the hunt for a new person to head the department at the end of next week.

A news release from Mayor Bill Carpenter's office announced that the city of Brockton, the Police Supervisors Union and Gomes had reached an agreement, permitting Gomes return to his former position.

"I thank Chief Gomes for his lifelong dedication to the City of Brockton and look forward to his continued service as a key member of the Brockton Police Department," said Carpenter in a statement.

On Friday, Carpenter was in Washington, D.C. attending a U.S. Conference of Mayors event and was unavailable for further comment.

Gomes also stated that he was not commenting on the matter Friday, but provided The Enterprise with an email that he sent to the entire police department about the change.

"The newly elected mayor wants to take the police department in a different direction under new leadership," Gomes wrote. "The Brockton Police Department has been part of my family for the last 28 years and will continue to be. It has been an honor to serve as your chief for the past two years."

Gomes, who lives in Bridgewater, is slated to step down as chief on Friday, Jan. 31. He was appointed to the position in 2012 by former Mayor Linda Balzotti to replace departing Chief William Conlon.

Gomes' contract as chief was scheduled to run through March 2015; however, as of publication, it was unclear how Friday's agreement would affect Gomes' contract.

A request was made on Friday by The Enterprise to the mayor's office for a copy of the agreement.

Also on Friday, an ordinance was filed by the mayor's office that, if passed, would allow the police department to be led by a civilian police commissioner instead of a chief.

The ordinance goes on to state that the new position of police commissioner would be appointed by the mayor to a term not to exceed 12 months, and any appointment would need confirmation by the City Council.

The commissioner's annual salary would be $149,000.

However, the ordinance is only a draft at this stage and may be amended by the City Council as it moves through the committee process.

While the news release confirmed that a new person will be heading the department in the future, the announcement left City Councilors with questions over who will be taking over the department and at what cost to tax payers.

"The million-dollar question is: who is going to run the police depart on Feb. 1?" said Ward 5 Councilor Dennis DeNapoli. "I don't where they're going with this."

Ward 6 City Councilor Michelle DuBois said she was concerned with the lack of details over what's next for the department, adding that she planned to file a request to invite Carpenter to come before the council to further explain the situation.

"What's the money numbers is a question for me. How much is this going to cost the tax payers." DuBois said.

The Ward 6 councilor was also critical of the timing of the release, noting that it came on a Friday afternoon while the mayor was out of town.

"So far, I haven't been impressed with the lack of transparency," DuBois said.

Other councilors said they were disappointed to see Gomes leaving the position.

"He's a good person, he's a good leader, and he's done some good things for the city of Brockton," said Councilor-at-large Robert Sullivan. "I guess, the positive is we're not losing him from Brockton Police. We'll still have him in some capacity there."

Ward 3 Councilor Dennis Eaniri said that he was also disappointed to see Gomes step down.

"I'm saddened to see this because I think Chief Gomes did an outstanding job," Eaniri said. "I thought the mayor would've at least allowed him to finish out his contract."

However, other councilors said they could understand the rational behind the change, noting that it would make sense for a new mayor to want to bring in his own people.

"One of his central platforms was around public safety, and I'm supportive of him creating a team that will help him achieve his goals about public safety," said Councilor-at-large Jass Stewart.

Ward 1 Councilor Timothy Cruise said that, in theory, he also supported Carpenter being able to bring in his own people, but he also had questions about the transition.

"I'm certainly willing to discuss it, but in the meantime I'm interested to see who will be running the department," said Cruise.

Edward Donga may be reached at edonga@enterprisenews.com.

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